<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Hint's drop like Domino's by CrashCityCentral</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27811381">Hint's drop like Domino's</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrashCityCentral/pseuds/CrashCityCentral'>CrashCityCentral</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>DC One Shots [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>DCU (Comics), Teen Titans (Comics), Young Justice (Comics)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bart Allen Needs A Hug, Bart is Kid Flash, Best Friends, Core Four, Disaster Trio, No Romance, Other, Sorry not sorryy, TimKonBartCassie, Wally just died, core disaster, prosthetic leg, timkonbart</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 17:09:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,264</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27811381</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrashCityCentral/pseuds/CrashCityCentral</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Bart Allen has been hiding something and no one knows how to approach him.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Bart Allen &amp; Cassie Sandsmark, Bart Allen &amp; Kon-El | Conner Kent, Bart Allen &amp; Tim Drake, Bart Allen &amp; Tim Drake &amp; Kon-El | Conner Kent &amp; Cassie Sandsmark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>DC One Shots [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1978993</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>42</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Hint's drop like Domino's</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Being on a team of superheroes both brings you closer together and further apart from your friends. Near-death experiences can go either way. For the most part, they were all very close, and in some cases inseparable. A group of four, in particular, held the inseparable, and that was Red Robin, Superboy, Impulse, and Wondergirl; also known as the Core Four, as their fellow teammates and apparently, fans know them as. They just seemed more understanding with each other than they were with the others. It was a good dynamic for them all. But when people are that close, they tend to notice when things are off. When a balance is shaken. </p><p>The first person that noticed was Tim. He was quick at noticing things and it came easy to him after years of training and practice. To him, it didn’t occur at first that it was anything too serious, but things got progressively worse over time. A few days after Bart’s surgery, he noticed a limp in his walk. That wasn’t too abnormal, seeing as he had to get used to a fake knee, or whatever Bart said he’d got. But then Tim noticed Bart in the lab a lot, sketching with tools and scraps scattered around him. Whenever he came close, Bart always shied away and hid his drawings. That was highly unusual for the speedster. </p><p>“What are you drawing?” Tim asked, walking over to Bart who was in the middle of the floor with a sketch pad in hand. He only caught a quick glimpse but it looked like blueprints of some kind? They were incredibly detailed but he couldn’t make out what they were for before Bart jumped away, hiding the pad to his chest startled. His expression went from scared to smiling in a split second, but enough for Tim to read him. </p><p>“Dude! You scared me! You could’ve messed me up!” He laughed, something so easy to him, but the twinges at the corners at his lips said it was forced. Tim pursed his lips and repeated himself. </p><p>“What were you drawing?” Bart’s face drops and he glances to his left. He’s looking for an excuse. </p><p>“I can’t really tell you. It’s a surprise I’m working on!” Bart smiles again. Forced. </p><p>Tim knows he’s lying but he doesn’t pry. He’ll just have to keep his eye on him.</p><p>The second person who noticed something was seriously off was Cassie, a month after his surgery. She and Bart were lounging together and she was painting his nails as usual. He was sitting in front of her, hand spread and resting his other arm over the back of the couch, watching the strokes of the brush against his nails. </p><p>“Something on your mind, speedy?” She hums, noticing his thoughtful expression. He looked up at her, not startled exactly, but dazed. He smiles and shakes his head. </p><p>“Was just thinking about what I’ll have for dinner tonight. I was thinking about stopping at big belly burger on the way home.” Bart chuckles. She nods, of course, he was thinking about food. But then he went quiet again, and this was normally when he’d start ranting non-stop and she’d listen. She glanced up at him and he was back to spacing off. Weird. </p><p>“Want to paint your toenails too?” She poked him back to, already done with his nails. </p><p>“NO.” Bart all but yelled. He never raises his voice. Cassie’s eyes widen and she frowns. </p><p>“Hun, it was just a question. Are you okay?” She takes out a blue lacquer and hands it to him. He takes it and uncaps it, following the usual pattern for whenever they have ‘girl time’. Or a girl and the closest thing she has to a girlfriend on the team time’. </p><p>“Yeah, fine. Just was lost in my head, y’know?” He applies the polish to her first nail. </p><p>“You seem to be doing that a lot.” She hums. He says nothing in response and she wanted to pry but so soon after Wally’s death, she didn’t feel it was right. He needed space. </p><p>The last person to notice was Kon, two months after Bart’s surgery. Bart was pestering him while he was trying to watch women's tennis where he obviously didn’t want to be bothered while not so subtly checking the contestants out. There was one moment where Bart was making a joke and another moment where there were a clatter and a hiss of pain. Kon stood, alarmed, and looked behind the couch where Bart was laying on the ground, eyes wide and body almost frozen. </p><p>“Imp, you alright?” Kon raised an eyebrow and Bart made no move to get up. </p><p>“Yep! A-ok! You can go back to your show I’m just gonna go find.. Tim.” Bart laid there and Kon continued to stare down at him. </p><p>“Imp.” </p><p>“Yea, Kon?”</p><p>“What’s wrong?”</p><p>All the color drained from Bart’s face, just like that. </p><p>“Nothing, pal! Just catching a quick rest. What’s up with you?” Bart gives a weak attempt at a smile. Kon wasn’t buying it. </p><p>“Bart. What happened?” He stares down at him sternly and could practically see Bart shrink under his gaze. </p><p>“Nothing.” He tried again and Kon glared harder. Kon walked around the couch to the same side as Bart and crouched down. Bart went frigid, not moving an inch. Kon took a look over his body, once, twice, and zeroed in on his leg. </p><p>“Does this have to do with your knee? Is it bothering you?” He went to reach for his leg and Bart suddenly shot upright, headbutting into the other. “OW! Bart!” Kon seethed, rubbing his forehead and Bart was in the same position. </p><p>“What the Hell is going on?” Tim walks in with Cassie right behind. They both shot Kon and Bart questioning looks back and forth. </p><p>“Somethings wrong with Imp’s knee.” Kon accused and Bart clenched his mouth closed. </p><p>“What? Bart, is that true?” Cassie glanced worriedly at her friend and he lowered his head in shame. Tim approached Bart and he made no move to stop him when he pulled off his boot. He was on the verge of tears once Tim paused after it was off. </p><p>“Bart?” He looked up, wide-eyed. Cassie and Kon both inched closer and looked as well. They hadn’t even rolled up the leg of his suit but they knew. When the boot came off, where there was supposed to be flesh and bone, was a metal foot. Cassie, in her worried state, wasted no time to roll his pant leg up, more and more metal showing until they got to his knee.</p><p>Tim was processing, Kon was confused and Cassie was panicking. Bart had tears rolling down his cheeks and he wiped at them stubbornly. </p><p>“Now you know.” Bart sniffed, not looking up to meet any of their faces. He couldn’t. He was afraid. </p><p>“Bart, you said you got a prosthetic knee. Only the knee.” Kon was confused and a little angry, but he was just scared for his little pal. Bart lowered his head more.</p><p>“Why didn’t you tell us?” Cassie gripped his shoulder firmly and Bart tried to wince away. </p><p>“I didn’t want you to kick me off the team or think I was weak.” Their hearts dropped and Cassie dove into a hug, followed shortly by Kon and both of them dragging Tim in. </p><p>“Bart, we would never think that.”</p><p>“You’re one of us. You should have told us.”</p><p>“It’s okay, Imp.” </p><p>Bart hugged them all back and slowly quieted his small whimpers and tears. “Thank you, guys.”</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>